School Feeding Technical Advisor International CST II WAE

DEADLINE FOR APPLICATIONS

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ABOUT WFP

The World Food Programme is the worlds largest humanitarian organization saving lives in emergencies and using food assistance to build a pathway to peace stability and prosperity for people recovering from conflict disasters and the impact of extreme weather shocks.

At WFP people are at the heart of everything we do and the vision of the future WFP workforce is one of diverse committed skilled and high performing teams selected on merit operating in a healthy and inclusive work environment living WFPs values (Integrity Collaboration Commitment Humanity and Inclusion) and working with partners to save and change the lives of those WFP serves.

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WHY JOIN WFP

• WFP is a 2020 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate.
• WFP offers a highly inclusive diverse and multicultural working environment.
• WFP invests in the personal & professional development of its employees through a range of training accreditation coaching mentorship and other programs as well as through internal mobility opportunities.
• A career path in WFP provides an exciting opportunity to work across the various country regional and global offices around the world and with passionate colleagues who work tirelessly to ensure that effective humanitarian assistance reaches millions of people across the globe.
• We offer an attractive compensation package (please refer to the Terms and Conditions section of this vacancy announcement).

PURPOSE OF THE ASSIGNMENT:

The Senior Technical Advisor will provide strategic technical leadership and advisory support to WFP Iraq and government counterparts on the design piloting institutionalization and potential scaling of a government-led healthy kitchen Home-Grown School Feeding model.

The Advisor will also lead the capacity strengthening of WFPs national school feeding and nutrition team through coaching mentoring technical guidance and structured learning initiatives.

OBJECTIVES OF THE ASSIGNMENT:

The assignment has two primary objectives:

a. Technical Leadership and Advisory Support

Provide high-level technical guidance on the development implementation institutionalization and scaling of Iraqs school feeding portfolio with a particular focus on the healthy kitchen Home-Grown School Feeding pilot and associated policy financing partnership and evidence-generation agendas.

b. Capacity Strengthening

Strengthen the technical and operational capacity of WFP Iraqs national school feeding and nutrition team through structured capacity development plans on-the-job mentoring coaching and technical trainings.

SCOPE OF WORK AND KEY RESPONSIBILITIES:

A. Strategic Technical Leadership on School Feeding

The Technical Advisor will:

Provide overall strategic and technical leadership for WFP Iraqs school feeding portfolio.

Guide the technical design and implementation of the healthy kitchen Home-Grown School Feeding pilot model.

Support the development of operational modalities that maximize integration within existing national systems and facilitate eventual government ownership and handover.

Ensure alignment and embedded design where possible of the pilot within government systems regulations and existing capacities.

Advise on nutrition-sensitive menu design food quality standards healthy eating approaches food safety considerations and operational standards.

Facilitate and strengthen cross-government coordination and partnerships among key ministries particularly the MoE MoT MoH MoP and MoF.

Support the development of governance coordination implementation and accountability arrangements for the pilot.

Provide technical guidance on local procurement and home-grown school feeding approaches that strengthen linkages with local food systems and markets.

Support integration of healthy eating and nutrition-sensitive Social and Behaviour Change Communication (SBCC) targeting students caregivers teachers and communities.

Support the development of implementation guidelines operational manuals SOPs and technical tools as required.

Provide technical and progress inputs for donor reporting.

B. Evidence Generation Policy Support and Advocacy

The Advisor will:

Support the development of the evidence base for school feeding in Iraq to inform government decision-making and future scale-up.

Provide technical support to the ongoing Value for Money (VfM) study and ensure alignment with policy and financing objectives.

Support the development of an investment case for school feeding to strengthen advocacy with the Ministry of Finance and other stakeholders for renewed domestic financing allocations.

Identify opportunities for innovative domestic financing mechanisms and complementary financing sources to support programme sustainability and scale-up including continuing ongoing engagements with the School Meals Coalition and the Sustainable Financing Initiative .

Support the finalization government endorsement publication and dissemination of the SABER.

Provide technical and strategic support for advocacy around the endorsement and launch of the National School Feeding Policy. Play a key support role in the launch of the Policy.

Develop advocacy materials presentations policy briefs and evidence products targeting senior government stakeholders and development partners.

Support engagement with donors IFIs UN agencies and development partners on school feeding priorities and financing opportunities.

C. South-South Cooperation and Knowledge Exchange

The Advisor will:

Identify relevant regional and international examples of successful Home-Grown School Feeding programmes.

Design and organize South-South knowledge exchange initiatives to facilitate peer learning and exposure to global good practices.

Identify funding opportunities for South-South knowledge exchanges if required and lead the application process for WFP Iraq

Support the identification of government counterparts and technical institutions for exchanges study visits workshops and technical dialogues.

Ensure lessons learned and global experiences are contextualized for Iraqs operational and institutional environment.

Support preparations for Iraq to participate in global school feeding for a including the Global Child Nutrition Forum and the School Meals Coalition Summit. Includes preparing background materials leading advocacy with government supporting preparation of the Iraqi delegation among others.

D. Capacity Strengthening and Team Development

The Advisor will:

Assess the technical and operational capacity development needs of the national school feeding team.

Develop structured individual and team capacity strengthening plans.

Provide day-to-day coaching mentoring and on-the-job technical support to national staff.

Design and deliver dedicated technical workshops trainings and learning sessions on priority school feeding topics.

Support staff in strengthening strategic planning stakeholder engagement analytical and programme management capacities.

Foster knowledge transfer and institutional learning to ensure sustainability of technical expertise within the Iraq Country Office.

DELIVERABLES:

Key deliverables may include but are not limited to:

Final HGSF concept note endorsed by the Ministry of Education and accompanying implementation plan.

Standard Operating Procedures for the HGSF model ready for handover to the Government of Iraq

Capacity strengthening strategy and training plan for the national school feeding and nutrition team.

Training materials workshop facilitation and mentoring documentation.

Technical inputs to the VfM study and investment case development.

Advocacy and policy engagement materials.

Support to finalization and publication of SABER School Feeding outputs.

Support to endorsement and launch of the National School Feeding Policy.

Contributions to the SBCC campaign and guidance on dissemination channels particularly at the school-level.

South-South exchange concept notes agendas and coordination support.

Periodic progress reports and recommendations for programme scale-up and institutionalization.

REPORTING LINES AND WORKING MODALITY:

The Senior Technical Advisor will report to the Head of Social Protection and work closely with the School Feeding and more broadly the Social Protection team relevant technical units government counterparts and partner organizations.

The assignment is primarily remote. The Advisor will maintain regular virtual contact with the national School Feeding team and the Head of Social Protection including joining weekly Social Protection team meetings. Approximately 3 in-person missions to Baghdad are planned over the assignment duration each of approximately 5 to 10 days. Mission objectives will include government engagement team workshops stakeholder consultations and joint field visits as appropriate. Mission timing and objectives will be agreed with the Head of Social Protection. Between missions the Advisor will maintain momentum through virtual collaboration document review and structured mentoring sessions. All travel will be arranged and approved in accordance with WFP Iraqs travel policies and security protocols.

QUALIFICATIONS & EXPERIENCE REQUIRED:

Education:

Advanced university degree in Nutrition Public Health Education Food Systems Social Protection International Development Public Policy Economics or related field.

Experience:

Minimum 8 years of progressively responsible professional experience in school feeding and social protection is required.

Demonstrated experience designing or supporting government-led school feeding programmes preferably including Home-Grown School Feeding models.

Strong experience working with government institutions and supporting systems strengthening and policy development particularly with Ministries of Education.

Demonstrated experience supporting evidence generation investment cases cost-benefit/value for money analyses or public financing advocacy for social protection programmes specifically school feeding.

Experience facilitating multi-sectoral coordination and partnerships across government entities.

Proven experience in capacity building coaching mentoring and technical advisory support.

Familiarity with school meals global platforms including the School Meals Coalition and the Global Child Nutrition Foundation.

Experience in fragile or complex operating contexts is highly desirable.

Skills and Competencies:

Strong strategic and analytical skills.

Excellent stakeholder engagement and facilitation skills.

Strong policy advisory and advocacy capabilities.

Demonstrated ability to operationalize innovative programme models and support scale-up.

Excellent written and verbal communication skills.

Strong training facilitation and mentoring skills.

Languages:

Fluency in English required. Knowledge of Arabic is an asset.

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Click here to access WFP Leadership Framework

REASONABLE ACCOMMODATION

WFP is committed to supporting individuals with disabilities by providing reasonable accommodations throughout the recruitment process. If you require a reasonable accommodation please contact:

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REMINDERS BEFORE YOU SUBMIT YOUR APPLICATION

• All applications must be submitted exclusively through our online recruiting system. We do not consider CVs or applications sent by email LinkedIn or any other channel.

• We strongly recommend that your Workday profile is accurate and complete and that all sections are filled in including your employment history academic qualifications language skills and UN grade (if applicable). Once your profile is completed please apply and submit your application.

• If you experience technical issues while submitting your application you may contact us at . Please note that this email is only for technical issues with an application - unsolicited applications or documents sent to this inbox will not receive a reply.

• At the application stage the only required documents are your CV and Cover Letter. Additional documents (passport certificates recommendation letters etc.) may be requested later in the process.

• Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted and invited to proceed to the next stage of the recruitment process.

All employment decisions are made on the basis of organizational needs job requirements merit and individual qualifications. WFP is committed to providing an inclusive work environment free of sexual exploitation and abuse all forms of discrimination any kind of harassment sexual harassment and abuse of authority. Therefore all selected candidates will undergo rigorous reference and background checks.

No appointment under any kind of contract will be offered to members of the UN Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions (ACABQ) International Civil Service Commission (ICSC) FAO Finance Committee WFP External Auditor WFP Audit Committee Joint Inspection Unit (JIU) and other similar bodies within the United Nations system with oversight responsibilities over WFP both during their service and within three years of ceasing that service.